Books

Les libéraux

Les libéraux. Collection "Pluriel." 2 vols. Paris: Hachette, 1986. Reprinted in one volume, collection "Tel." Paris: Gallimard, 2001.

An Intellectual History of Liberalism

An Intellectual History of Liberalism. Translated by Rebecca Balinski, with a foreword by Jerrold Siegel. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1995. Originally published as Histoire intellectuelle du liberalisme: Dix leçons (Paris: Calmann-Lévy, 1987). Published in Brazilian as História intelectual do liberalismo: dez liçoes (Rio de Janeiro: Imago, 1990). Published in Polish as Intelektualna historia liberalizmu, trans. Marian Miszalski (Lódz: Kurs, 1990; Krakow: Arcana, 1994). Published in Italian as Storia intellettuale del liberalismo, trans. L. Caracciolo di San Vito (Rubbettino, 2010).
Highlighting the social tensions that confront the liberal tradition, Pierre Manent draws a portrait of what we, citizens of modern liberal democracies, have become. For Manent, a… More

Tocqueville and the Nature of Democracy

Tocqueville and the Nature of Democracy. Translated by John Waggoner. With a foreword by Harvey C. Mansfield Jr. Lanham, Md.: Rowman and Littlefield, 1996. Originally published as Tocqueville et la nature de la démocratie (1982; Paris: Fayard, 1993; Paris: Gallimard, 2006).
One of France’s leading and most controversial political thinkers explores the central themes of Tocqueville’s writings: the democratic revolution and the modern passion for… More

The City of Man

The City of Man. Translated by Marc A. LePain. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1998. Originally published as La cité de l'homme (Paris: Fayard, 1994).
The “City of God” or the “City of Man”? This is the choice St. Augustine offered 1500 years ago–and according to Pierre Manent the modern West has decisively… More

Modern Liberty and Its Discontents

Modern Liberty and Its Discontents. Edited and translated by Daniel J. Mahoney and Paul Seaton. Lanham, Md.: Rowman and Littlefield, 1998.
In this book, distinguished French philosopher Pierre Manent addresses a wide range of subjects, including the Machiavellian origins of modernity, Tocqueville’s analysis of democracy,… More

Une éducation sans autorité ni sanction?

Une éducation sans autorité ni sanction? With Alain Renault and Albert Jacquard. Collection "Nouveau collège de philosophie." Paris: Grasset, 2004.
L’éducation est, pour les sociétés démocratiques, un problème et un enjeu majeurs. S’il est vrai que nulle société ne peut faire l’économie d’une réflexion… More

A World beyond Politics?: A Defense of the Nation-State

A World beyond Politics?: A Defense of the Nation-State. Translated by Marc LePain. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2006. Originally published as Cours familier de philosophie politique (Paris: Fayard, 2001). Published in Greek as Apla maqhmata politikis filosofias (Athens: Polis, 2005).
We live in the grip of a great illusion about politics, Pierre Manent argues in A World beyond Politics? It’s the illusion that we would be better off without politics–at least… More

Enquête sur la démocratie: Études de philosophie politique

Enquête sur la démocratie: Études de philosophie politique. Collection "Tel." Paris: Gallimard, 2007.
Les Européens ont aujourd’hui bien du mal à s’entendre, mais il y a au moins un sujet qui semble les réunir : c’est la démocratie. Que nous soyons libéraux ou… More

Le regard politique

Le regard politique. Entretiens avec Bénédicte Delorme-Montini. Collection "Essais." Paris: Flammarion, 2010.
“Aujourd’hui, la faculté humaine qui reçoit toute l’approbation, c’est l’imagination. Or je n’ai pas d’imagination, je ne suis pas un artiste et… More

Metamorphoses of the City: On the Western Dynamic

Metamorphoses of the City: On the Western Dynamic. Translated by Marc LePain. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2013. Originally published as Les métamorphoses de la cité (Paris: Flammarion, 2010). Published in Italian as Le metamorfosi della città: Saggio sulla dinamica dell'Occidente, trans. Giulio Di Ligio (Rubbettino, 2014).
What is the best way to govern ourselves? The history of the West has been shaped by the struggle to answer this question, according to Pierre Manent. A major achievement by one of… More

Montaigne: La vie sans loi

Montaigne: La vie sans loi. Collection "Tandem." Paris: Flammarion, 2014.
Il va de soi aujourd’hui que Montaigne est notre ami. Il nous captive, nous émeut, nous persuade. Mais Montaigne nous trompe. Il nous conduit par le bout du nez. Nous devons donc… More

Essays

René Girard, la violence et le sacré

– "René Girard, la violence et le sacré." Review of La violence et le sacré, by René Girard. Contrepoint no. 14 (1974): 157-70. Partially excerpted in Esprit 3, no. 28 (April 1979): 44-45.

Une théorie qui a quelque chose à cacher

– "Une théorie qui a quelque chose à cacher." Contrepoint no. 14 (June 1974). Reprinted in René Girard, La violence et le sacré, coll. "Pluriel" (Paris: Hachette, 1994), 518-532.

Aurel Kolnai

– "Aurel Kolnai." Contrepoint no. 21 (1976): 63-6.

La crise de l’Église

– "La crise de l'Église." Review of La confusion des langues, by Alain Besançon. Commentaire no. 4 (Winter 1978/79): 585-90.

La raison d’Israël

– "La raison d'Israël." Review of La philosophie historique de Raymond Aron, by Gaston Fessard. Commentaire no. 13 (Spring 1981): 154-6.

Tocqueville’s Democratic Man

– "Tocqueville's Democratic Man." Government and Opposition 17, no. 2 (1982): 195-210. Excerpted from Tocqueville and the Nature of Democracy.

Raymond Aron

– "Raymond Aron." Chap. 1 in Four Essays on the Occasion of the 25th Anniversary of the Erasmus Prize Foundation: Raymond Aron, Isaiah Berlin, Leszek Kolakowski, Marguerite Yourcenar. The Hague: M. Nijoff, 1983.

Raymond Aron

– "Raymond Aron." In Dictionnaire des philosophes, 2:125-8.. 2 vols. Edited by D. Huisman. Paris: Presses universitaires de France, 1984.

Les infortunes de la liberté

– "Les infortunes de la liberté." Review of Politics and the Pursuit of Happiness, by Ghita Ionescu, and The State, by Anthony de Jasay. Commentaire no. 30 (Summer 1985): 732-6.

Le citoyen et la nation

– "Le citoyen et la nation." In Rediscoveries, 22-9. Edited by J. A. Hall. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1986.

Quelques remarques sur la notion de sécularisation

– "Quelques remarques sur la notion de sécularisation." In The French Revolution and the Creation of Modern Political Culture, vol. 3, The Transformation of Political Culture 1789-1848, 351-7. Edited by François Furet and Mona Ozouf. Oxford: Pergamon Press, 1987-9.

Présence de Thomas Hobbes

– "Présence de Thomas Hobbes." Review of Souveraineté et légitimité chez Hobbes's "Leviathan", by Franck Lessay. Commentaire no. 42 (Spring 1988): 588-90.

Maistre, “Considérations sur la France”

– "Maistre, Considérations sur la France." In Dictionnaire des oeuvres politiques, edited by F. Châtelet, O. Duhamel, E. Pisier. 2nd ed. Paris: Presses universitaires de France.

Paine, “Droits de l’homme”

– "Paine, Droits de l'homme." In Dictionnaire des oeuvres politiques, edited by F. Châtelet, O. Duhamel, E. Pisier. 2nd ed. Paris: Presses universitaires de France.

Strauss et Nietzsche

– "Strauss et Nietzsche." Revue du métaphysique et de morale 3 (July/Sept. 1989): 337-45.

Hobbes, “Léviathan”

– "Hobbes, Léviathan." In Dictionnaire des oeuvres politiques, edited by F. Châtelet, O. Duhamel, E. Pisier. 2nd ed. Paris: Presses universitaires de France.

Les secrets de la Loi

– "Les secrets de la Loi." Review of Maïmonide, by Leo Strauss, edited and translated by Rémi Brague. Commentaire 45 (Spring 1989): 214.

Notre destin libéral

– "Notre destin libéral." Preface to Carl Schmitt, Leo Strauss et la notion de politique, by Heinrich Meier, 7-12. Translated by Françoise Manent. Collection "Commentaire." Paris: Julliard, 1990.

Letter from Paris

– "Letter from Paris." Government and Opposition 25, no. 3 (Summer 1990): 317-20.

Intérêt privé, intérêt public

– "Intérêt privé, intérêt public." In L'actualité Tocqueville. Centre de Publications de l'Université de Caen no. 19 (1991): 67 ff.

De Gaulle as Hero

– "De Gaulle as Hero." Perspectives on Political Science 21, no. 4 (1992): 201-6.

The Contest for Command

– "The Contest for Command." In New French Thought, translated by Rebecca Balinski, edited by Mark Lilla, 178-85. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1994.

The Modern State

– "The Modern State." In New French Thought, 123-33. Edited by Mark Lilla. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1994.

Montesquieu and the Modern Experience

– "Montesquieu and the Modern Experience." Government and Opposition 29, no. 3 (July 1994): 378-91. A partial translation of the chapter on Montesquieu from The City of Man.

Machiavel

– "Machiavel." In Dictionnaire de philosophie politique, edited by Philippe Raynaud and Stéphane Rials, 369-74. Paris: Presses universitaires de France, 1996.

Démocratie et nation

– "Démocratie et nation." Interview by Stéphane Kelly. Argument 1, no. 1 (1998): 81-93.

La raison et les dieux

– "La raison et les dieux." Review of La Rationalité des valeurs, ed. Sylvie Mesure. Commentaire no. 82 (Spring 1998): 555-7.

L’homme moderne: en fuite ou en liberté?

– "L'homme moderne: en fuite ou en liberté?" In La Grâce et le Désordre: Entretiens sur le protestantisme et la modernité, edited by Pierre-Olivier Monteil. Collection "Autres Temps." Labor et Fides, 1998.

Un rapport sur l’état de la cité

– "Un rapport sur l'état de la cité." Review of Dictionnaire de philosophie politique, edited by Philippe Raynaud and Stéphane Rials. Critique nos. 608-9 (Jan./Feb. 1998): 1020-6.

Témoinage

– "Témoinage." In Stanislas Fumet ou la présence au temps, 152-4. Paris: Cerf, 1999.

Rousseau et la parole politique

– "Rousseau et la parole politique." In Shakespeare et la voix, ed. Jean-Marie Maguin and Patricia Dorval, 187-92. Paris: Société Française de Shakespeare, 1999.

Tocqueville and the Ambiguities of Modern Liberty

– "Tocqueville and the Ambiguities of Modern Liberty." The John Coffin Memorial Lecture in the History of Ideas, School of Advanced Study, Institute of United States Studies, University of London. 2000.

Christianity and Democracy (Parts I & II)

– "Christianity and Democracy (Parts I & II)." Chaps. 12 and 13 of A Free Society Reader: Principles for the New Millennium, edited by Michael Novak, William Brailsford, and Cornelis Heesters. Lanham, Md.: Lexington Books, 2000.

Machiavel, critique de la philosophie

– "Machiavel, critique de la philosophie." In L'Enjeu Machiavel, ed. Michel Senellart and Gérald Sfez. Presses universitaires de France, 2001.

La démocratie et les liens entre les hommes

– "La démocratie et les liens entre les hommes." Critique 58, no. 665 (2002): 749-68. (Excerpts of Cours familier de philosophie politique.)
Compte rendu de l’ouvrage de Pierre Manent intitulé «Cours familier de philosophie politique» (2001), qui examine l’idéal libéral du monde politique contemporain hérité… More

The Wars of the Twentieth Century

– "The Wars of the Twentieth Century." Translated by Daniel Mahoney and Paul Seaton. Perspectives on Political Science 31, no. 3 (2002): 139-47.

La démocratie de notre temps

– "La démocratie de notre temps." With Alain Finkielkraut and Marcel Gauchet. Transcription de l'émission de radio Répliques. Geneva: Tricorne, 2003.

Modern Democracy as a System of Separations

– "Modern Democracy as a System of Separations." Translated by Phil Costopoulos. Journal of Democracy 14, no. 1 (January 2003): 114-25. (A translation of the first chapter of Manent's A World beyond Politics?)

Pierre Hassner, défenseur de la paix

– "Pierre Hassner, défenseur de la paix." In Entre Kant et Kosovo: Études offertes à Pierre Hassner, 77-82. Edited by Anne-Marie Le Gloanec and Aleksander Smolar. Paris: Presses de Sciences-po, 2003.

Le pouvoir du roman

– "Le pouvoir du roman." With Mona Ozouf. In Ce que peut la littérature, by Alain Finkielkraut. Paris: Stock/Panama, 2006.

Révolution française, Révolution liberale

– "Révolution française, Révolution liberale." In Psychanalyse de l'antilibéralisme: Les Français ont-ils raison d'avoir peur?, 83 ff. Edited by Christian Stoffaës. Paris: Éditions Saint-Simon, Institut d'Histoire de l'Industrie, 2006.

Tocqueville, Political Philosopher

– "Tocqueville, Political Philosopher." Chap. 4 in The Cambridge Companion to Tocqueville, ed. Cheryl B. Welch. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006.

What Is a Nation?

– "What Is a Nation?" Intercollegiate Review (Autumn 2007): 23-31.

Conversion

– "Conversion." Commentaire no. 121 (2008): 61 ff.

Aron et l’histoire

– "Aron et l'histoire." In Raymond Aron philosophe dans l'histoire, 127-32. Edited by Serge Audier, Marc-Olivier Baruch and Perrine Simon-Nahum. Paris: Fallois, 2008.

Comment repenser la démocratie?

– "Comment repenser la démocratie? Débat entre Marcel Gauchet et Pierre Manent." Le Magazine littéraire no. 472 (2008): 90-95.

Nation et démocratie

– "Nation et démocratie." Les cahiers de Politique autrement, special number (2008).

Grandeur et misère du libéralisme

– "Grandeur et misère du libéralisme." Confèrence prononcée le 2 mars 2009 à l'Institut français de Prague. http://www.philolog.fr/grandeur-et-misere-du-liberalisme-pierre-manent/

The Transatlantic Predicament

– "The Transatlantic Predicament." In America at Risk: Threats to Liberal Self-Government in an Age of Uncertainty, 15-28. Edited by Robert Faulkner and Susan Shell, with the assistance of Thomas E. Schneider. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2009.

Libéral et catholique

– "Libéral et catholique." In Penser le monde moderne: Le bon grain et l'ivraie?, 7-12. Edited by Philippe Bénéton and Marie-Jeanne Seppey. Paris: Cujas, 2009.

L’Europe, les États-Unis et la guerre

– "L'Europe, les États-Unis et la guerre." In La Fin des guerres majeures?, 252-9. Edited by Frédéric Ramel and Jean-Vincent Holeindre. Paris: Economica, 2010.

Montaigne et la civilité

– "Montaigne et la civilité." Acts of the Colloquium "Civilité classique," June 17-18, 2010. Annuaire de l'Institut Michel Villey 3 (2011).

Se gouverner et être gouverné en démocratie

– "Se gouverner et être gouverné en démocratie." Contribution to the Université populaire du Mouvement Démocrate. In La démocratie en devenir: université populaire 2011, 25-37.

L’Europe évoque un empire sans empereur

– "L'Europe évoque un empire sans empereur." Interview with Pierre Manent, by Michel Crépu and Paul-François Paoli. Revue des deux mondes (January 2011): 63-72.

Conversion

– "Conversion." Translated by Gladden J. Pappin. Modern Age 53, no. 3 (Summer 2011): 81-3. Originally published in Commentaire 31, no. 121 (2008).

Political History and Political Philosophy: Making Sense of the West

– "Political History and Political Philosophy: Making Sense of the West." Perspectives on Political Science 41, no. 2 (2012): 100-5.
The old Western synthesis, the coming together of self-government, the Christian proposition, modern equality, and the commitment to relieving man’s estate, appears to be unraveling. In… More

Le procès de la démocratie

– "Le procès de la démocratie." In La démocratie, une idée neuve (2012). Acts of the 86th session of the Semaines sociales de France, November 25-27, 2011.

Rome comme problème philosophique

– "Rome comme problème philosophique." In Sans le latin, 105-22. Edited by Hubert Aupetit and Cecilia Suzzoni. Paris: Mille et une nuits, 2011.

Montaigne and Rousseau: Some Reflections

– "Montaigne and Rousseau: Some Reflections." Chap. 14 of The Challenge of Rousseau, ed. Eve Grace and Christopher Kelly. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2012.

Between Athens and Jerusalem

– "Between Athens and Jerusalem." First Things (February 2012): 35-39.
Manent discusses the theological-political problem.

By Design and Choice

– "By Design and Choice." Interview with Alexander Kazam. National Review Online, August 21, 2012.

Human Unity Real and Imagined

– "Human Unity Real and Imagined." First Things (October 2012): 47-52. Also published as "L'Église entre l'humanité réelle et l'humanité rêvée" (text in English), chap. 9 in The Global Quest for "Tranquillitas Ordinis": "Pacem in Terris", Fifty Years Later, ed. Mary Ann Glendon, Russell Hittinger, and Marcelo Sánchez Sorondo (Vatican City: Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, 2013), 109-18.

La ‘gouvernance’: un machiavélisme sans virtù

– "La 'gouvernance': un machiavélisme sans virtù." Commentaire no. 146 (Summer 2014): 309 ff. Originally printed in Les Cahiers de l'hôtel de Galliffet (2014), ed. Giulio De Ligio, proceedings of the conference "Le problème Machiavel: Science de l'homme, conscience de l'Europe" at the Institut culturel italien, October 4-5, 2013.

Repurposing Europe

– "Repurposing Europe," First Things, April: 2016.
In this English excerpt (and reworking) of his new, highly controversial book La Situation de la France, Manent argues that Europe and the European nations must return to their Christian… More

The Tragedy of the Republic: The Decay of Political Culture in the West

– Manent, Pierre.  "The Tragedy of the Republic: The Decay of Political Culture in the West." First Things: May 2017.
Excerpt: “We French have for some years been overcome by a furor for republicanism and for citizenship. There is no activity so humble that it cannot take on an intimidating nobility… More

Natural Law and Human Motives

– Manent, Pierre. "Natural Law and Human Motives." Modern Age: Winter 2017.
Excerpt: “The very notion of natural law presupposes or implies that we have the ability to judge human conduct according to criteria that are clear, stable, and largely if not… More

Pierre Manent on Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

– Interview by Guillaume Perrault, Le Figaro, November 28, 2018.
Pierre Manent, interviewed by Guillaume Perrault about the Russian writer and critic of Communism Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. Par Guillaume Perrault Publié le 28/11/2018 à 17h38… More

Time to Wake Up

– Pierre Manent, "Time to Wake Up," First Things, April 28, 2020.
An English-translation of an interview conducted by Figaro‘s Eugenie Bastié on Manent’s response to the coronavirus and the state of Western societies.

Commentary

Pierre Manent on the Wellsprings of Western Liberty by Daniel Mahoney

– Daniel J. Mahoney. "Communion and Consent: Pierre Manent on the Wellsprings of Western Liberty." Perspectives on Political Science 41, no. 2 (2012): 93-9.
Mahoney discusses “Communion and Consent” as the wellsprings of Western liberty in the thought of Pierre Manent.

L’Homme moderne au marché du monde

– Panagiotis Christias. "L'Homme moderne au marché du monde. Pierre Manent critique du libéralisme?" In La politique et l'âme : autour de Pierre Manent (Paris: CNRS, 2014).

Un libéral et un classique

– Daniel J. Mahoney. "Un libéral et un classique. La lecture néo-aristotélicienne de Raymond Aron par Pierre Manent." In La politique et l'âme : autour de Pierre Manent (Paris: CNRS, 2014).

Pierre Manent’s Common Political Science

– Ryan Shinkel. "Pierre Manent’s Common Political Science." University Bookman, Fall 2015.
Excerpt: Manent is maybe the greatest political philosopher you have not heard of before and should read nonetheless. This Parisian has written several books on political science and… More

What Would It Mean for France to Accommodate Muslims?

– David Frum. "What Would It Mean for France to Accommodate Muslims." The Atlantic, September 26, 2016.
Excerpt: A philosopher grapples with Islam, secularism, and their place in society. Last year, a distinguished French philosopher named Pierre Manent attempted to offer an answer in a… More

France Must Practice a Politics of the Possible

– Paul Seaton, "France Must Practice a Politics of the Possible," Library of Law and Liberty, October 13, 2016.
Excerpt: At the beginning of his career, Pierre Manent spoke of political philosophy’s “healing light.” Likewise, he pointed to Cicero as a classical model of a philosophically… More

Multimedia

La loi naturelle

– "La loi naturelle." Académie Catholique de France, Nov. 4, 2013.

Sous quel régime vivons-nous?

– "Sous quel régime vivons-nous." Le Fonds de Dotation de l'École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, Mar. 6, 2014.